Charlie Brown, Linus, Innocence And The Meaning Of Christmas

Dec. 08, 2009

We're not in the habit of promoting certain television programs, but it is worth noting one airing tonight on ABC at 8:00 Eastern. It's the A Charlie Brown Christmas special (see it online, here).
Last week, you may recall, President Barack Obama unceremoniously bumped the show from its original air date with the pomp of his West Point Afghanistan speech. ABC imediately re-scheduled.

The lackluster speech and indecisive policy added only slightly less to the public's displeasure of him than did the canceling of the special. That's because, despite what the media portrays and tried to convey, Americans still love traditional values and cultural institutions that portray and communicate them. It may be campy to some, who see it as a relic of a simpleton time, but countless millions, no matter how many times it has aired, sit down, many with their own children, and watch this most meaningful of shows. Especially in this era when even the innocence of cartoons has been debased and corrupted, not to mention that the word "Christmas" practically is shunned, A Charlie Brown Christmas means a lot to most (see Ralph Couey's tribute in the Johnstown Tribune-Democrat).

In other words, people instinctively don't need modern culture's twist on what they inherently know is right, just and good. No amount of modernism (or "post-modern" culture), however sophisticated it positions itself in an attempt to make the public feel inadequate for not "progressing," can substitute for everlasting truth, or redefine what is wholesome. It is as ever present as the life sprung forth in Charlie Brown'sChristmas Tree. For the Truth is out there. In this case, it's in this memorable scene:

Enduring values and the true meaning of Christmas continue to resonate in the truth that comes from innocence in this memorable television moment. In its simplicity, its message is more powerful than the one conveyed by modern culture.